If Hugs Were Kisses Part II
by NovemberMurray
Summary: I got to thinking (again) what if... A (fluffy yet slightly angsty) rewrite of S2E4 Relics of the Old Republic last scene (the reunion scene). Rex/Ahsoka.
Author's Note: This was the logical follow up IMHO. (Oh god I'm so glad Rex is back!) -Em

 _ **If Hugs Were Kisses Part II**_

 **Rex and Ahsoka**

Ahsoka's comm beeped softly and she paused in the hallway on her way to the bridge. She glanced down at it with a lump in her throat. She felt the same anxiety and dread about every comm message she'd received since the Ghost left for Seelos, worried about the news they might bring back. Her heart clenched and she swallowed the lump painfully when she read the ship-wide memo: Ghost had docked. She lingered in the hallway, unwilling to rush into the bad news.

Ahsoka straightened up when she heard the footsteps behind her, amid them the distinctive gait of the lasat. She turned to face the crew of the Ghost and whatever they brought with them. They were all present, even Chopper. Kanan's brow was stern as usual and his eyes troubled but Hera beside him was smiling softly, almost conspiratorially.

As if on cue the Ghost crew parted for the man behind them. He walked forward with casual ease, but then snapped into a drilled parade rest before her.

"Commander," he said and a smile spread over Ahsoka's face. She stepped forward and hesitated before him. His beard was longer than it had been when he left and his face was tanned and weathered by the sun. He was older; the accelerated aging had taken the sharp tone from his muscles. His aging had been one of the reasons he left years ago. Wolf and Gregor needed him and neither of them were able to live the life of running and fighting that the rebels did. That was reason enough to go. But Ahsoka knew a part of him was relieved that she wouldn't have to watch him decline. No mater how many times she told him it wouldn't mater to her, he couldn't believe her—couldn't believe that she would still care for him the same way when he could no longer fight beside her and protect her.

There was no fear in his eyes now, standing in front of her an old man. He looked at her with care and peaceful acceptance.

"You got old," he said in a softer voice and it startled a relieved sigh out of her.

"It had to happen sometime, Rex," she said back at him and he smiled, the familiar smile she had been missing. Under the differences time had carved on him, Rex was still the same man underneath. He was still the same steady rock that held her in the galaxy's gravity. An impulse came over her, and Ahsoka gave in to it with barely a moment of hesitation.

She threw her arms around Rex's shoulders and met his chapped lips with hers, kissing him like no time had passed. His beard tickled her face and for a moment he didn't respond. She almost pulled away, scared for a second she'd gone too far, when his large, warm hands wrapped around her waist and up her back. Rex pressed her closer and kissed her gently, savoring every moment. She relaxed into his embrace and the kiss broke reluctantly. Ahsoka pressed her forehead to his in a Togrutan gesture of affection.

"I'm glad you're still alive," he said, his voice slightly husky. It made her smile, though her eyes when they met his were filled with compassionate understanding. She knew what it was like to wonder what might have happened and face the truth that she might never know the answers.

"Me too," she said. He chuckled and grinned.

"Well I wouldn't be," Rex dropped one hand from her waist and stepped back to motion at the Ghost crew behind him, "if it weren't for these guys."

"Thank you for trusting my friend," Ahsoka said sincerely. Hera smiled at her warmly and Ezra was grinning. Between them, Kanan was frowning and doing a poor job of concealing his disapproval.

"It wasn't easy," he said to her meaningfully. Ahsoka felt as much as saw Rex flinch. Kanan looked away as he added, "it's still not."

"Nothing worth doing ever is," Ahsoka told him gravely. She slid her hand down Rex's arm and he let go of her waist to take it. She met his eyes and squeezed gently, feeling familiar and new callouses on his palm. Rex gave her a quirk of a smile. They both knew whatever followed wouldn't be easy, but that didn't mean it wasn't worth doing. They turned and headed toward the bridge together, the crew of the Ghost following them.

.

At the end of the long day getting to know Phoenix Squadron and many briefings, Rex followed Ahsoka into her quarters. Like he expected, there was little to distinguish it from any other. She lived a life that could be packed up in a mater of minutes. There were a few things thought: the togruti woven blanket over her bunk, the candles and exercise mat set up for her meditation, the exercise clothes discarded on the floor she was fruitlessly trying to hide. Rex chuckled at the last.

"You don't change," he said, sitting at her desk.

"Hush," Ahsoka scolded lightly, her chevrons darkening. She fumbled for the buckles of her chest armor and quickly pulled it off, leaning it against the bed. Her lightsabers were next: the larger one going on the nightstand and the smaller under her pillow like always. She took off the belt of armor plates and sighed with the loss of weight. Rex chuckled again.

"You never did like wearing armor." She threw him an exasperated look. "But I'm glad to see you in it. The galaxy is getting more dangerous all the time."

Her playfully annoyed expression dropped and she leaned forward over her knees, hunching her shoulders.

"I know," she whispered. Rex inhaled sharply, seeing the ghosts in her eyes.

"Bad news?" He asked her. It had to be if she put it off until they were alone together. Ahsoka just nodded. Her eyes were bright with forming tears when she looked up at him. She looked so young, her shoulders hunched, making herself small and her chin trembling.

"Did you know even back then?" She asked him meaningfully in a whisper.

Rex felt a weight fall through his gut and sighed, slumping his own shoulders and bending his head under her betrayed look.

"I suspected," he admitted softly.

"And you didn't tell me?" She implored, and even though it wasn't the angry snap he expected it hurt enough to make him flinch.

"You don't know how many times I _wished_ I had told you before I left," he admitted, "I thought about it, many times. But I always told myself I might be wrong, when I was just too much of a coward to tell you the truth." Rex kept his gaze on the floor, to scared to see the pain in her eyes after finally holding her in his arms again. He wasn't sure how he would survive losing her a second time. But once started, he couldn't stop himself. He went on:

"On Seelos I had a lot of time to think about the past. I told you things got bad at the end of the war, but not how bad. General Skywalker changed after you left, and the longer the war raged on, the more he grew distant and angry. He never trusted the Council after what they did to you—neither did _I_. By the end we were all exhausted by the war and Skywalker was no different. I was his Captain for three years, through near-constant fighting, and I didn't see him falling to the Dark Side right in front of me. I could have stopped him. How many Jedi would that have saved? How many _younglings_ in the Temple? Those were _my men_ he led into the Temple that night!" His voice became hoarse and he he blinked back tears. "I was powerless to stop them," he said in a whisper, "to stop Anakin, to stop it all."

Ahsoka could only stare at her stalwart Captain. His words were eerily similar to her own thoughts. She had been Anakin's Padwean, the person who should have been closest to him. She had asked herself every day when she awoke from her nightmares of Vader how she could never see it coming. Every terrible deed Vader did, every atrocity he ordered and every resistance fighter he killed weighed on her shoulders like they were her own sins. She knew the guilt that drowned Rex, knew it like the callouses on her palms.

Rex took a deep breath and quickly whipped his eyes before he continued, "After Order 66 you were grieving and wounded in more ways than one. I couldn't admit my own part to you, not when I knew it would break both our hearts, yours twice over. But I did just that when I left. I couldn't admit it at the time, but carrying around that secret was one of the reasons I had to go. I wish I had just told you. I wish I had been there when you found out, for whatever that's worth." He chanced a look up at Ahsoka, bracing himself.

Her blue eyes were swimming, her chin trembled and she choked on her words. Ahsoka gave up on speach and launched herself toward him, latching her arms around his broad shoulders, as her sobs broke free. Rex was stunned again, as he had been when she first met him in the corridor. Belatedly he cradled her in his arms and pulled her onto his lap. She wrapped her thin limbs sinuously into a ball as she sobbed into his shirt.

"I didn't see it," she said breathlessly between sobs, "I didn't see it either. I should have. I should have known and... and I should have done something... I should have stayed."

"No," Rex said fervently. "Not after what the Council did to you. There was a good reason you left! I'm so glad you did." Rex closed his eyes against the nightmare images of Ahsoka gunned down my his brothers. She left the war, he reminded himself, and probably never should have been in it to start with.

"What he did wasn't your fault, Ahsoka," he assured her, "not in any way!" Ahsoka gasped another sob and fell limp against his shoulder for a moment, released from a weight just hearing the words even if she couldn't bring herself to fully believe them. Knowing that Rex at least didn't blame her was enough at that moment. Ahsoka pulled away to look into his warm, sincere eyes and the loving expression on his face.

"It wasn't yours either," she said. His lips parted in shock. Ahsoka could see he didn't believe the words anymore than she did but the same tears of relief were welling in his eyes. She wrapped him as much as she could in her thin arms, and Rex tightened his protective embrace.

"How could Skyguy do this?" She whispered against his neck. Rex leaned his head against her montral gently, feeling the soft warm flesh against his cheek.

"I don't know, kid," the old nickname tripped off his tongue. "Grief and desperation do strange things to people. Kenobi may not have told us everything about what happened on Mustafar, but I think he was right about one thing; the man we knew is gone."

Ahsoka stayed wrapped in his arms, curled against his chest, and leaning against his shoulder crying silently for her master. She remained there long after both their tears had dried. Rex thought his legs might go to sleep with her weight on them. She definitely wasn't the little girl she used to be.

Coming off the Ghost he had accepted that his accelerated aging had separated them enough that there was no chance of rekindling what they had before. Somehow it still hurt to see her grown into the beautiful woman she was. All the gawky teenage angles were gone and her montrals and lekku had grown into graceful fullness. She looked as sweet and compassionate as she always had without the childish innocence. Her strength finally showed on the outside for everyone to see, and it was entrancing. Seeing her just reminded him of everything he loved about her and had tried to forget.

"Rex," Ahsoka said, jerking him out of thought.

"Yes."

She sat up enough to look him straight in the eye and said, "I'm not a kid anymore."

Rex gave a shaky sigh, he had called her 'kid' out of sheer habit. "No, you aren't." He saw the familiar intention in her eyes, and somehow his hands found their way to her hips without thought.

"I'm not young anymore either, Ahsoka," he said, seriously. Her eyes darkened with a hint of stubborn fury.

"I let you walk away once," she said firmly, shifting in his lap to straddle his legs, "and I missed precious years with you. I'm not letting you go without a fight this time."

Rex looked up at her blazing eyes. Her soft lekku hung down between their shoulders, hugging the curves of her chest. Her long fingers on either side of his face were warm and gentle, brushing against the rough texture of his beard.

"I don't get in many fights these days. Haven't you heard?" he said, his hands on her waist sliding lower and back, "I retired." He pulled her closer, drawing her flush against his chest. She gasped in surprise, and he grinned. He could see a snippy remark forming on her smiling lips, so he slid one hand up her back lekku to cradle her head and draw her down to meet his lips. Ahsoka hummed in pleasure and melted into his embrace. There would be hard days ahead, but, for the moment, they were happy to be together, drawing comfort from each other in their grief and strength in the dark.

.

Author's Note: Hope you enjoyed it. If you're interested in more Rexoka stuff check out my author's page for my longer stories (Warning: Angst awaits you). I'm also thinking of doing a How-the-Ghost-crew-got-together story if there's interest. Drop me a review or let me know if there are any other scenes you'd like to see embellished or extended. Hope you enjoyed it. –Em.

Update: Fixed a few problems. I hate missing shi- _stuff_ like that. -Em


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